Monthly Archives: January 2018

Russia to simplify online sports betting account registration

Russia’s government is helping bookmakers by simplifying the cumbersome online sports betting account registration process.

Russia’s Ministry of Finance recently drafted new legislation that would eliminate the current requirement for online betting punters to register online with a centralized payment hub (TSUPIS) and then confirm that registration by physically presenting proof of identity at a land-based betting shop or at the bookmakers’ retail partner.

The draft legislation states that a Russian-licensed online bookmaker “has the right to entrust … the identification of a gambling participant to the center for the recording of online betting of bookmakers or sweepstakes, operating in accordance with the requirements of the Federal Law of December 29 2006 No. 244-FZ.”

The move follows a meeting earlier this week between government officials and representatives of Russia’s 14 licensed online bookmakers, who expressed frustration with the two-step registration process.

New York senate explores legal sports betting possibilities

New York state senators heard from sports betting stakeholders on how the state should best pursue a legal sports betting market.

Wednesday saw the New York Senate Standing Committee on Racing, Gaming and Wagering hold an informational hearing into “the potential of sports betting in New York State.”

States like New York are frantically trying to prepare the ground in case the US Supreme Court chooses to overturn the federal sports betting prohibition, while other stakeholders are keen to ensure they have a seat at the table when legal sports betting commences.

NBA SAYS ‘F**K YOU, PAY US’

After Two-Year Poker Hiatus, Online Legend Hafiz ‘hafizzle’ Khan Wins WSOPC Thunder Valley for $189K

California’s Thunder Valley wrapped up its second World Series of Poker Circuit stop over the weekend. The series awarded a dozen gold rings, including one in the $1,675 Main Event […]

The post After Two-Year Poker Hiatus, Online Legend Hafiz ‘hafizzle’ Khan Wins WSOPC Thunder Valley for $189K appeared first on .

‘Predatory’ video game loot boxes catch US lawmaker’s ire

A Washington State lawmaker has opened an inquiry into the loot box model of microtransactions in console games to determine whether it should be considered as gambling.

The News Tribune reported that State Senator Kevin Ranker filed a bill to clarify whether loot boxes and other purchases in video games are gambling masked in a game.

“What the bill says is, ‘Industry, state: sit down to figure out the best way to regulate this,’” Ranker said, according to the news outlet. “It is unacceptable to be targeting our children with predatory gambling masked in a game with dancing bunnies or something.”

Ranker’s proposed bill, however, might go beyond regulating loot boxes due to the measure’s vague language. The general idea of Ranker’s bill was if a game looks like gambling then it should be regulated as gambling.

Duterte taps ‘No.1 gambler’ in Philippinesto combat illegal gambling

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has admitted he asked the help of notorious gambling financier Atong Angto stamp out illegal gambling in the country and shore up the revenue of the flailing state-run Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

Duterte’s admission came after Ang appeared before the Senate inquiry into the supposed under-declaration of small town lottery (STL) revenues by authorized agency corporations (AACs) on Wednesday.

In an impromptu speech before leaving for India, the president confirmed that he had talked to Ang, who he described as a “number one gambler,” according to SunStar Manila.

Duterte didn’t mention when the phone call took place but he admitted admonishing Ang for his supposed illicit activities before appealing to his “friend” to help PCSO stop jueteng, a popular illegal numbers game, in the country.

China state-run broadcaster slams online lottery suspension

China’s lottery sales increased by more than 8% in 2017, thanks to double-digit gains by sports lottery products.

Official figures released by the Ministry of Finance on Wednesday show overall lottery sales hitting RMB 427b (US$67b) last year, a year-on-year gain of 8.1% over 2016’s RMB 394.6b. This marks the second straight year of annual gains following the 3.8% decline experienced in 2015.

While welfare lottery sales continued to account for the majority of overall revenue, welfare lottery sales improved only 5.1% to RMB 217b, while sports lottery sales shot up 11.4% to RMB 210b. The sports lottery improvement is all the more remarkable given that 2017 didn’t feature a major international football tournament like the UEFA Euro 2016.

The overall gains also came despite the ongoing suspension of online lottery sales imposed by Beijing in March 2015 after evidence emerged of serious corruption at provincial lottery administration centers.

Win Systems launches compact Ventura roulette

Malta, 24 January, 2018, – Win Systems, the leading technology supplier for the gaming and entertainment industry, has added Gold Club Ventura to its varied range of electronic roulette machines.

The six-position machine features Gold Club’s standard ergonomic design and premium build quality and durability, while most significantly, it takes up nominal space on the casino floor.

Casino operators will benefit from the most compact six-seat roulette on the market, with its easy integration into tighter spaces ensuring flexibility of table layout and the full monetisation of the gaming area.

Eric Benchimol, CEO of Win Systems, said: “Our Gold Club electronic roulette range continues to go from strength to strength, with the latest model, Ventura, capable of driving incremental revenues to all types of casino operator with our most compact design to date.

Yggdrasil releases spellbinding Ozwin’s Jackpots slot

January 24, 2018 ­­–  Yggdrasil Gaming is challenging players to lift an ancient curse in its spellbinding new game, Ozwin’s Jackpots.

The five-reel, 20-payline slot sees Ozwin’s trusty apprentice weave spells in an attempt to bring back the mighty magician to his human shape – in exchange for big wins.

The game sees players collect crystals to restore the orbs of power and take a shot at five different jackpots. It also features the Spellbook bonus game, with extra crystals and bounties on offer.

The jackpots will fall regularly and more often than other multi-jackpot games, ensuring players remain engaged not just by the title’s visuals and audio, but also by the chance of winning big.

ORYX Gaming content powers up GAMEIOM platform

January 24th 2017 – ORYX Gaming has agreed a deal with GAMEIOM to integrate its full suite of games content onto the Isle of Man and Gibraltar-based platform and content aggregator.

This partnership sees ORYX deliver its exciting and highly-engaging content to GAMEIOM’s expanding operator base. There will be a combination of proprietary and third-party casino content, slot games, table games, card games, video poker and traditional games.

A wide selection of titles, including Mission-powered games from Kalamba Games, Red Hot Fire Pot and Golden Nights from Gamomat, are to join the GAMEIOM platform. Other top providers on the ORYX platform include Patience, Golden Hero, Quickfire, Extreme Live Gaming, Amatic, and these will all be available to GAMEIOM customers.

Matevz Mazij, CEO of ORYX Gaming commented: “We’re proud to be able to offer our games on the renowned GAMEIOM platform. Integrating our full suite of casino content has been a seamless process and we look forward to our partnership delivering further growth for both parties.”

NetEnt launches Universal Monsters the Phantom’s Curse video slot

NetEnt, the leading provider of digital gaming solutions, launches Universal Monsters™ The Phantom’s Curse.

Set in a classic theatre ambience, the 5-reel, 4-row, 40-fixed line video slot game features an enthralling operatic soundtrack as it tells the spellbinding tale of how the disfigured Phantom falls for the beautiful soprano Christine.

The enthralling game is packed with a range of exciting gameplay features, including chandelier scatter symbols, masked phantom wild symbols, and a pick-and-click bonus game set against the backdrop of three mirrors.

For additional information please contact:

Start-Ups prepare to Pitch at ICE London

17 start-ups represent the cutting edge of innovation

Sports Betting, Bitcoin, Social Gaming and Daily Fantasy Sports companies lead the way in this year’s line-up of finalists for the Pitch ICE competition, a feature of ICE London that has become a focal point for gambling innovators and investors alike. The 17 finalists will deliver their pitches to assembled industry leaders and attendees at this year’s show. Prior to ICE, each start-up produced their own pitch video that provides an outline of their business and concept. These can be viewed on the ICE London website.

Commenting on the 2018 finalists, Ewa Bakun, Head of Industry Insight and Engagement at Clarion Gaming, said: “We’re very excited about the quality of entrants for Pitch ICE which continue to improve every year.  ICE London provides a professional business environment for gaming organisations of all sizes and we are delighted to be able to provide a platform for innovators who may be small in size but huge in terms of creativity, passion and determination to succeed.  ICE attracts the most successful entrepreneurs in international gaming and the Pitch competition is an invaluable shopwindow for our finalists, who we hope will make the transition from fledgling business to fully fledged ICE exhibitor.”

The finalists comprise: Beer League; Bethereum; Betonbot; Bookee; BotGaming; Chalkline Sports; ChopsticksInTheApps; DFS Italia; Mutuel Play Ltd; Performance Predictions; Players Vote; Puurl; Reality Races; ScoreFair; Social Bets; Spotcoin; and, STATZUP.